both boehner and mitch mcconnell said taxes will simply not go up, period. >> bu i think you're missing the second part of the sentence which is they're willing to consider new revenue. there are lots of ways, in that old expression, to skin a cat. i thought john boehner the other day was quite emphatic in saying we are open to new revenues under the right framework. dave gergen is absolutely correct. i think this is a two-step deal. i think it's too ambitious with too little time to get to the grand bargain in the so-called lame duck session of the congress. but i think you can scrape together enough to avoid sequestration and avoid the fiscal cliff or fiscal slope. remember, they have to come up with only about $100 billion. i know that sounds weird. but $100 billion to set that aside. between spending cuts and perhaps some loophole closures i think they can raise it. but you can't confuse that with a long-term deal. >> john podesta, does the math work, though, which is if you close deductions for the wealthy people can you raise enough revenue? i think that's the fundamental question